Clincher-device for stapling machines



Feb. 21, 1933. A. H. MAYNARD CLINCHER DEVICE FOR STAPLING MACHINES Filed April 30, 1929 Patented Feb. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES PATEN OFFICE ARTHUR H. MAYNARD, OF WARWICK, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO BOSTON WIRE STITCHER COMPANY, OF PORTLAND,

MAINE, A CORPORATION OF MAINE CLm'OHER-DEVICE FOR STAPLING MACHINES Application filed Apri1'30,

This invention relates to improvements in wire-stitching or stapling machines for use in attaching sheets of paper, stitching or sta pling tags, labels and the like to articles of 5 commerce,'and for applyingstaples to other articles to fasten them together. The present improvement relates particularly to the anvil or clincher-device for bending over the legs of the staple to clinch them agamst the under side of the work.

A particular object of the invention is to provide an adjustable anvil or clincher-device which may be set to clinch the opposite legs of the staples in different dlrectlons; specifically, to bend both legs inwardly toward each other; to bend one leg inwardly and the other outwardly; or to bend both legs outwardly.

Another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable anvil or clinches-device which may be quickly and conveniently adjusted by hand without the use of tools when changing from one method of clinching the legs of-the staple to another method.

Another object of the invention is to provide an anvil or clincher-device which may be used with practically all types of machmes, and which may be applied thereto without material change in the construction or design thereof.

Another object of the invention is to providera device of the type specified which is simple in construction, proof against derangement or getting out of order and economical to manufacture.

Further objects of the improvement are set forth in the following specification which describes a preferred form of construction of the invention by way of example, as illustrated by theaccompanying drawing. In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a conventional type of hand-operated stapling machine.

showing the fore part of the stapling-arm partly broken away and illustrating the present improved anvil or clincher-device as applied to use therewith;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the base of the machine showing the anvil or 1929. Serial No. 359,279.

clincher-device in one position of adjustment;

Fig. 3 is a similar plan view showing the anvil or clincher-device in another position of adjustment;

Fig. 4 is a front view of a portion of the stapling-machine showing the base and the anvil in section on line 44 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the base and anvil in section on line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the adjustable anvil or clincher-device;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view showin several layers of material fastened togetherIvy a staple having its legs bent inwardly and clinched against the under side thereof; and

Fig. 8 is a similar view showing the legs of the staple bent in a different manner with one leg clinched inwardly and the other outwardly.

In the present drawing the improved anvil or clincher-device is shown as applied to use on a hand-operated stapling machine of the type employed as an oflice or desk appliance, but it is to be understood that the invention is adapted for use with other varieties of machines; for instance, on poweroperated stitchers in which the staples are formed from a length of'wire and applied to the work at one operation.

As shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, the stapling machine is of a design and construction substantially like that described and illustrated in U. S. Letters Patent No. 1,584,788 granted May 18, 1926. The machine comprises essentially, a fiat base or support 2 with a stapling-arm 3 arranged thereabove and adapted to carry the stapling-mechanism. In one form of construction the base 2 may be constituted by a flat sheet-metal plate provided at its rearward end with upstanding ears 4, between which is pivoted the stapling-arm 3 through the means of a stud or pin 5. A flat spring 6 is riveted i be inserted thereunder; but in other types of stapling machines the stapling-arm may be rigid with the base without provision for it to pivot or rock thereon. i

The stapling-arm 3 is preferably of hollow construction to adapt it to serve as a magazine for carrying a supply of staples s. As herein shown, the stapling-arm 3 comprises opposite side-plates 10 riveted t0 the sides of a hollow, U-shaped staple core 11, across the top of which the staples s are straddled. The upper sides of the staplecore 11 are oifset inwardly to provide spaces between them and the faces of the side-plates 10 for receiving the legs of the staples, and.

,the side-plates 10 have intiirned flanges 12 which overlie the top of the staple-core 11 p to prevent the staples s from riding up there- A staple-pusher 15, shown in Fig. 1, is adapted to straddle the sides of the core 11 in position at the rear of the row of staples s to slide the latter forwardly to feed the foremost staple into position beneath the stapling-mechanism. Asherein shown the staple-pusher 15 is attached to the end of a flat ribbon-like spring 16 which is wound into a volute 'coil 17 held on a core or mandrel .18 extending between upwardly projecting sideflanges 19 forming a part of the side-plates 10 of the arm 3. The tension of the spring 16 serves to urge the staple-pusher 15 forwardly on t e staple-core 11 to cause it to feed a fresh staple into position beneath the staple-driver 20 after the preceding staple has been applied to the work.

The staple-driver 20, which is constituted by a flat metal blade, is carried on a plunger 21 which reciprocates on the front of the stapling-arm 3, the side edges of the driver 20 being formed with splines 22, see Figs. 4 and 5, which slide in grooves 23 in the inner faces of the side-plates 10.

Secured to the top of the plunger 21 is a hand-rest or knob 25 adapted to receive the pressure of the operators hand to slide the staple-driver downwardly in driving the staples through the work. Beneath the knob 25 is a helical spring 26, the lower end of which seats against a shelf or rest 27 ,thereby tending to maintain the plunger normally raised into position withthe bottom edge of the staple-driver 20 above the top of the foremost staple in the series. It will be understood that the pressure of the staplepusher '15 holds the foremost staple pressed against the forward end of thearm 3 with its legs opposite the grooves 23in which the staple-driver 20 slides, thereby preventing the staple from dropping down out of posi- 'tion until it is acted upon by the driver.

stood that this part of the apparatus is not directly related to the present invention and may take other forms.

In stapling machines of the present and other types it is customary to provide a hardened clincher-block or anvil on the base of the machine arranged beneath the staplingmechanism and adapted to bend over the legs of the staple to clinch them against the work. In accordance with the present invention the anvil or clincher-device is swiveled or pivoted on the base 2 of the machine to adapt it to be turned into different positions to bring into play several different forms of clinchergrooves or depressions which act on the legs of the staple to bend them over in diiferent directions in accordance with the character of the work to be performed. Where the sheets of paper or other work are to be permanently attached the legs of the staple are bent inwardly toward each other, or in other cases bent outwardly away from each other; but where it is desired to have the staples applied in such manner that they may be more easily removed from the work, one leg is bent inwardly and the other outwardly so that they both extend in the same direction. As has been indicated, these difi'erent methods of clinching over the legs of the staple are accomplished by providing the anvil with different forms of clincher-faces or grooves for acting on the ends of the legs as they are driven down through the work.

In the present preferred embodiment of the invention the anvil or clincher-device is constructed in the form of a circular disk 30 having a reduced neck or shank 31 held rotatably in a suitable bearing or aperture 32 in the base 2 of the machine. The overhanging rim of the head of the disk 30 seats against the top of the base 2 and is provided with lateral-. ly-extending arms 33 adapted to be grasped by the fingers to rotate the anvil in its bearing 32. As will be observed by reference to Figs. 4, 5 and 6, the top of the arms 33 are ofi'set slightly below the level of the upper face of the disk 30 for a purpose as next explained.

Fastened to the forward end of the base 2 by suitable means such as the rivets 34 1s a rectangularly-shaped spring-plate 35 which overlies the arms 33 of the disk or anvil 30, being provided with a central circular aperture through which the head of the disk projects. As shown in Fig. 1, the spring 35 1s arehed upwardly midway between its ends to raise it slightly above the top of the base 2 with its rearward end bearing against the base. The spring-plate '35 is thus caused to hold the anvil 30 against the base 2 with its shank 31 in the apertured bearing 32, while adapting the disk to rise upwardly to a slight extent when it is turned for a purpose as later explained.

In the present drawing the upper face of 35 the anvil.

the axis of the anvil to cross each other at an angle. The two depressions 36 and 37 may be substantially continuous, with the bottom of the grooves taking the form shown in Fig. 4; that is to say, each groove 36 and 37 has a concaved bottom Wall extending outwardly from the axis of the anvil slightly beyond the point when the legs of the staples s engage therewith. It will thus be evident that as the staple s is driven down through the work to the ends or points of its le s will meet the curved faces of the grooves 6 and 37 to bend the legs inwardly to clinch them against the underside of the work in the manner as shown in Fig. 7. 7

On the other hand, the two grooves or depressions '38 and 39 which are disposed in alinement crossing the axis of the anvil at an angle to the first grooves 36 and 37 are arranged in spaced apart relation as shown 30 in Fig. 5. The groove 38 has the same relation to the axis of the anvil 30 as the previously described groove 36, but the other groove 39 is spaced away from the axis to extend substantially to the outer periphery of Through this formation of the clincher-faces or grooves 38 and 39 one leg of the. staples s is caused to meet the outer end of the curved bottom wall of the groove 38 to bend it inwardly, while the other leg of 40 the staple slides against the inner end of the curved bottom of the groove 39 to bend it outwardly. The result of this arrangement of the grooves is to cause the legs of the staple to be bent oven, with one extending toward and the other away from the center of the staple as shown in Fig. 8 of the drawing.

It will be understood that the anvil or clincher-device 30 is adapted to be operated by hand to rotate it on its axis to bring either of the pairs of clincher grooves into alinement with the bottom of the staple-driver 20 when the stapling-arm is carried down against the top of the work. In order to hold the anvil from turning during the stapling operation, suitable detents are provided for locking the anvil in whichever positionit may be set. Any suitable form of detent catch or lock may be employed for this purpose and, as herein shown, I provide protuberances or projections 40 on the underside of the arms 33 adapted to snap into suitable recesses or apertures 41 and 42 in the base 2. As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the sides of the protuberances or stud-like projections 40 are preferably beveled to adapt them to ride up out of the openings or holes 41 and 42 when the anvil is turned or rotated on its axis, the spring-plate 35 yielding to permit the anvil to lift for this purpose.

Suitable stops may be provided to limit the turning movement of the anvil '30 and, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, pins or rivets 43 are secured in the base 2 to project into position to engage the edges of the arms 33 when the anvil is turned from one position to another. It will be obvious that by changing the location of the stop-pins 43 and by providing another pair of holes for receiving the detentprojections 40 the anvil could be arranged to turn to still another position to bring an additional set of clincher-grooves into play;

for instance, two grooves set outwardly toward the periphery-of the anvil or both in position simi ar to that of the grooves 39 whereby they would be caused to bend bothlegs of the staple outwardly. Having now described one known form of stapling machine and a preferred construe tion of the present adjustable anvil or clincher-device for'use therewith, the method of operation of the complete apparatus will next be explained. For clinching the staples in the usual manner, that is by bending the legs toward each other, the anvil 30 is turned into the position illustrated in Fig. 2 with the detent-projections ,40 engaged with the apertures 41, see also Fig. 4. The anvil is manipulated by simply pressing the fingers against the rounded ends of its arms 33 to rotate it in its bearing 32 in the base 2, the "detent-projections 40 being caused to ride up out of one set of apertures as the anvil is elew vated against the pressure if the spring-plate 35. As the projections 40 ride into the other K I set of apertures the spring will again depress the anvil into the position shown in Fig. 1 to seat its overhanging rim against the top of the base 2. i

The operator places the work '10, which may consist of sheets of paper to be attached together, tags to be secured to certain articles,

'or any other variety of work, on the top of the anvil 30 beneath the stapling-arm 3. The

hand is then pressed against the knob 25 to carry the forward end of the arm 3 down on the work to hold it in place, the spring 6 being of less tension than the spring 26 which holds the plunger 21 in raised posi- 'tion on the arm. After the arm 3 has been brought down against the work continued pressure on the knob 25 will cause the plunger 21 to he slid downwardly against the. tension of the spring 26. Thestaple-driver 20 carried on the plunger 21 will thus he slid downwardly to, act against the top of the foremost staple s to force the latter downwardly in the grooves 23 to drive its legs through the work w. As the legs of the staple are pierced through the work their ends will come into engagement with the curved or concaved bottom faces of the grooves 36 and 37, see Fig. 4, whereupon, during the completion of the downward stroke of the driver 20, they will be bent inwardly. The ends of the legs are thus caused to be bent inwardly and then upwardly to a slight extent as illustrated in Fig. 7 of the drawing whereby to clinch them snugly againstthe underside of the work in the usual manner.. After the anvil 30 has once been adjusted the machine may be operated repeatedly without further setting to apply'the staples in the manner as above described, the staple-pusher 15 acting to slide the row of staples s forwardly on the core 11 to deliver a new staple into driving position after the preceding staple has been driven into the work and the staple-driver has been raised under the action of the spring 26.

When it is desiredxto clinch the staples in a different manner, for instance by bending one leg inwardly and the other outwardly away from the center ofthe staple the anvil 30 is adjusted to the position shown in Fig. 3. For this setting, the anvil 30 is turned counter-clockwise to disengage the detents 40 from the apertures 41 and thereafter engage them with the apertures 42. This rotative adjustment of the anvil 30 brings the two grooves or depressions 38 and 39 into alinement with the lower edge of the staple-driver 20 and the machine will then operate in the manner as next explained. The knob 25 is pressed downwardly to lower the stapling-arm 3 against the work and the plunger 21 is then'forced down to cause the staple-driver 20 to drive the legs ofthe staple through the Work in the manner as previous- .ly explained. As the ends of the legs of the staple pierce through the work and engage with the concaved faces of the grooves 38 and 39 in the manner illustrated in Fig. 5, the leg of the staple which rides in the groove 38 will be bent inwardly while the opposite leg will impinge against the bottom of the groove 39 to cause it to be bent outwardly. The result of the operation of the machine with the last described adjustment of the clincher-anvil 30 is shown in Fig. 8, it being noted that this method of clinching the legs of the staple adapts the latter to be more readily removed from the work. That is to say, by placing a knife or other sharp instrument under the head or cross-bar of the staple the latter may be drawn upwardly as its bent-over legs straighten to permit its release. It has been noted that in some cases it is desirable to bend both legs of the staple efiect the clinching of the legs of the staples in accordance with different methods as desired. The device comprises but two elements, the anvil itself which is rotatably mounted on the base of the machine, and the spring-plate for holding it in place. The improved deviceis adaptable for use with practically all types of wire-stitching or stapling-machines and may be applied thereto without material change in the construction or design of the basic machine.

Due to its simplicity in construction and arrangement the improved device may be manufactured at relatively low cost so as not to materially increase the cost of the whole machine.

The adjustment of the clincher-device is performed most conveniently without the exercise of care on the part of the operator, the anvil being automatically located in its different positions of adjustment so that the relation with respect to the stapling-mechanism with which it co-operates. The present specification and drawing describe and illustrate the invention as embodied in a preferred form of construction and by way of example only, 't being under stood that various modificatio s may be made in the form and arrangement of the parts of the device without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, without limiting myself in this respect, I claim: 1. In a stapling machine, the combination of means for driving the staple through the work, and a clincher-anvil rotatably adjustable on an axis parallel with the direction in which the staples are driven and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of dissimilar arrangement adapted to bend the legs one end of one of them disposed at a greater distance from said axis than its opposite end.

2. In a device of the type specified, the combination of a base, staple-driving means arranged above the base, an anvil rotatable in a bearing on the base and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of dissimilar arrangement for bending the legs of the staples in different directions, said anvil being adjustable to different-positions to bring each of the differently arranged clincher-faces into co-operative relationship with the stapledriving means, and detent-means for maintaining the anvil in its difi'erent positions of adjustment.

3. In a machine of-the type specified, the combination of a base, staple-driving means supported above the base, a clincher-anvil rotatable on a vertical axis on the base and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of dissimilar arrangement extending in different directions on the upper face of the anvil, and detent-means 0n the anvil adapted to engage means on the base as the anvil is rotated whereby to retain it in its different positions of adjustment to aline its clincher-faces with the staple-driving means.

4. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base, staple-driving means supported above the base, a clincher-anvil rotatable on a vertical axis on the base and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of dissimilar arrangement extending in different directions across its upper face, detent-means acting between the anvil and the base to retain the anvil in its different positions of adjustment with its clincherfaces in alinement with the staple-driving means, and resilient means for actuating the detent-means.

5. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base provided with a circular bearing, staple-driving means supported above the base, a clincher-anvil rotatable in the bearing on the base and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of different arrangement extending radially of its axis, detent-means on the anvil adapted to engage with correspondingly formed detent-means on the base to retain the anvil in its different positions of adjustment with its clincherfaces in alinement with the staple-driving means, and resilient means acting against the anvil to normally maintain the detent-means in engagement while adapting the anvil to move axially of its bearing to permit release and re-engagement of the detent-means.

' turned to different positions,

6. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base, staple-driving means supported above the base, an anvil rotatable on the base and provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of difierent arrangement, detent-means on the underside of the anvil adapted to engage correspondingly formed detent-means on the base, and a spring acting to hold the anvil against the base to normally maintain the detent-means in looking engagement while adapting the anvil to be raised" to release the detent-means as it is turned from one position to another.

7. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base having a circular bearing with detent-apertures at the sides thereof, staple-driving means supported above the base, an anvil resting against the base and provided with a reduced neck adapted to turn in the bearing thereof, said anvil provided on its upper face with a plurality of clincherfaces of difi'erent arrangement adapted to be brought into co-operative relationship with the staple-driving means when the anvil is a spring acting on the anvil to hold it pressed against the base, and detent-projections on the anvil signature.

adapted to engage with thedetent-apertures in the base to retain the anvil in its difierent positions of adjustment.

8. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base formed with-a circular opening and detent-apertures at the sides thereof, staple-driving means supported above the base, a circular anvil having a reduced neck fitted to turn in the opening in the base and provided with detent-projections on its underside adapted to enter the detent-apertures in the base, the upper faces of said anvil being provided with clincherfaces of different arrangement adapted to be brought into co-operative relationship with the staple-driving means when the anvil is rotated on its axis, and an arched spring secured to the base to overlie the anvil and provided with a circular opening for exposing the face of the anvil.

9. In a machine of the type specified, the combination of a base formed with a circular opening and detent-apertures at the side thereof, an anvil having a circular head provided with a plurality of clincher-faces of different arrangement disposed radially of its axis and formed with arms projecting from its sides, the head on the anvil being pro vided with a reduced neck adapted to rotate in the opening in the base and the underside of the head being provided with tapered detent-projections adapted to seat'in the detent-apertures in the base when the anvil is turned to difi'erent positions, and a springplate secured to the base and arched to overlie the arms of the anvil and formed with a central circular opening through which the head of the anvil projects.

10. In a stapling machine, the combination of means for driving a staple through the work, and a clincher-anvil rotatably adjustable about an axis parallel with the direction in which the staple-is driven and provided with a plurality of radially-extending clincher-grooves, one of said grooves having its ends disposed concentric with said axis and another groove having its ends arranged eccentric with respect to theaxis whereby the legs of the staples may be bent in different directions in accordance with different positions of adjustment of the anvil.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my ARTHUR MAYNARD. 

